Immortality begins with meditation puppets

Chapter 226 Masterpiece of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion (Two Chapters Combined)

"Forty thousand spirit crystals for one? That price is enough to buy a one-eyed monster puppet at the Lin family's shop, which has the maximum combat power of the first tier!"

Among the gathered cultivators, some rational ones felt that although the beautiful snake puppet was wonderful, Su Qing was too ruthless, and buying this puppet for 40,000 spirit crystals was a terrible mistake.

Su Qing paid no attention to his complaints. Seeing that the crowd had gathered around, she changed her enthusiastic shouting from before, adopting an indifferent attitude and coolly saying:
"This puppet is the masterpiece of a reclusive puppeteer from the Hundred Treasures Pavilion. A masterpiece cannot be priced according to the rigid puppet grade."

"I have some connections with the master, and that's how I acquired these ten puppets. Once they're sold out, I don't know when the next batch will arrive. If you're willing to buy these puppets, it means you've accepted the price. And if you later accuse me of being greedy, that won't do."

Upon hearing this, all the rogue cultivators present were stunned.

In their view, this puppet could only have been made by Su Qing himself.

After all, he started out making witch puppets, and now creating this beautiful snake is a way of staying true to his roots.

But judging from what he said, was this puppet actually made by another puppet master from the Hundred Treasures Pavilion?
Are there any puppeteers in this world as unconventional as Su Qing?
"A masterpiece, a pure masterpiece, I, Wei Debao, can attest to it. Those poor wretches who don't even have 40,000 spirit crystals, if you can't afford it, don't stand so far forward. Make way for me, and I'll buy all these puppets!"

Since the two female serpent statues were destroyed by Qinghe, Wei Debao had been venting his energy these past few days. Now, full of vigor, he let out a loud shout, exuding the aura of a vengeful and powerful man, which immediately made the rogue cultivators make way for him.

After he reached the serpent beauty and experienced her many wonderful qualities, he looked up and saw the proud and aloof Phoenix Princess.

I just felt that this master was too good at manipulating his mind.

Such a proud princess would be perfect to serve Wei Debao!
"Brother Debao, do you want ten bodies?"

Although Wei Debao was fond of selling people, he was still a guest, and Su Qing welcomed him warmly.

"Of course! Fellow Daoist Su's puppets—no, they are the work of a master from the Hundred Treasures Pavilion—are meant to be bought and slowly treasured and played with. I must say, I am most capable of appreciating the wonders of such puppets. I must keep all ten beautiful snake puppets!"

In preparation for the Immortal City Auction, Wei Debao had his brothers-in-law pool together over a million spirit crystals, determined to obtain a second-tier demon core in order to break through to the second-tier body cultivation level.

But there are still a few days until the auction, and these beautiful snakes won't wait for anyone!

Now that he'd run into them, he figured he should catch them all in one fell swoop. He figured he could ask his sisters to beg their husbands to sell some magic items and pills to help him make up for the shortfall.
Besides, he wasn't doing it purely for his own enjoyment; Su Qing's Passionate Series puppets have always been popular in the secondhand market.

After he buys it, there might be room for appreciation in the future, and he might be able to make a small profit!
The only problem is.

"Fellow Daoist Su, you can't trick me again this time. There shouldn't be any problems with the template for the Fire Phoenix Princess, right?"

Having bought the beautiful snake twice, and also sold Su Qing twice at the same time, Wei Debao didn't gain any advantage and lost a lot of spirit crystals for nothing.

He was also terrified, so he leaned close to Su Qing's ear to first determine whether this batch of goods was clean and whether there would be any future problems.

"Absolutely nothing to worry about. With the Hundred Treasures Pavilion as our guarantor, if the Fire Phoenix Clan wants to cause trouble, they'll go after the Hundred Treasures Pavilion. Brother Debao is in White Cloud Immortal City, so there's absolutely nothing to worry about!"

Su Qing gave a firm assurance, which made Wei Debao nod slightly.

Because of wealthy and influential customers like Wei Debao, who also had a brother-in-law, they bought out all the princess-style snake figurines.

Su Qing could only bow and apologize to the other wealthy patrons, telling them to be more decisive next time to avoid leaving empty-handed like today.

"Hmph, a puppet who only cares about having fun, you actually dare to ask for 40,000 spirit crystals? Anyone who buys it is a fool!"

A sinister voice reached everyone's ears.

Before Su Qing could react to these words, Wei Debao couldn't help but speak up.

He calls himself stupid, but did he even ask his brothers-in-law?

"Who's talking nonsense!" Wei Debao turned his head fiercely, wishing he could break the neck of the person who spoke.

Unexpectedly, when he turned around, he saw Lin Fan, the Foundation Establishment cultivator of the Lin family who was currently enjoying great popularity in Baiyun Immortal City.

These are my own brothers-in-law, I can't afford to offend them, so I'll just have to tolerate them this time!
Suppressing his anger, Wei Debao, carrying the beautiful snakes, stormed home.

Without the beautiful snake, the number of onlookers from the surrounding area only increased.

The serpent beauty's antics are nothing compared to the spectacle of Lin Fan facing off against Su Qing.

These days, Su Qing and Liang Haishun, along with other professionals, have been doing business steadily on this street.

I'm not quite sure what the Yuan and Lin families have been doing lately.

The independent cultivators, however, were well aware of this.

Since the arrival of these two companies.

Baiyun Immortal City shifted from defense to offense, and not only did they engage in a betting battle every half month, but the cultivators sent out by the Yuan and Lin families also each obtained the head of a second-tier demon king.

Three days ago, the Lin family head and the Yuan family head joined forces to severely injure the Golden Roc King, who had recently been wandering outside Baiyun Immortal City after losing his beloved son.

These achievements immediately made the Yuan and Lin families famous throughout Baiyun Immortal City.

Many street vendors and small shop owners without any connections were forced to lose their livelihoods by the power of the Yuan and Lin families.

Among them were some stubborn individuals who would rather die than submit, but without exception, the Yuan and Lin families both openly and secretly beat them up and killed them.

Thus, although they had only been in Baiyun Immortal City for a short time, they swept through the Yuan and Lin families in Baiyun Market like autumn leaves in the wind.

At this moment, it has become a colossal entity, second only to the Yunshan Sect, looming over the heads of many independent cultivators.

Only Baibaoge, Yuanlailou, and Liang Haishun and other professionals who are united around Su Qing can still do their business on this street.

But even with the protection of the Hundred Treasures Pavilion, how long can they hold out?
Lin Fan suffered a loss at Su Qing's hands last time, so he's bound to get his revenge this time.

"The value of a puppet determines its price. A mere snake-woman puppet from the Daoist sect can sell for 40,000 spirit crystals, while the Lin family's puppets can only be sold at a discount."

The value of each person's puppet has already been assessed by fellow Daoists using spirit crystals. If Fellow Daoist Lin is dissatisfied, he can also raise the price of the Lin family's puppets for sale.

However, if that's the case, your Lin family's weak and monstrous puppets won't fetch a good price!

When Su Qing saw Lin Fan causing trouble, she had no intention of indulging him at all.

These kinds of people who eagerly offer themselves up for a beating must be dealt with severely the first time they do so. Otherwise, they will only become more demanding and think that their face is bigger than the sky and that no one can slap them.

As expected, Lin Fan, who had been running rampant in Baiyun Immortal City these past few days, turned red in the face and trembled with anger after being spoken to by him.

"Bullshit! My Lin family has everything from first-tier to third-tier puppets. We sell puppets at rock-bottom prices, so why would we be afraid of you!"

"Oh, your Shadow Demon was beaten by that Taoist priest, and died a terrible death!" Su Qing said slowly and deliberately.

"My Lin family has a history of ten thousand years and an accumulation of a thousand years. We have countless second-tier puppets, and the Shadow Phantom is just one of them!" Lin Fan roared in anger.

"Oh, your Shadow Demon, it was beaten by Xiao Dao." Su Qing said expressionlessly.

"Hmph, not to mention second-tier puppets, you can't compete with my Lin family even for first-tier puppets. My Lin family is determined to get the Yunshan Sect's order!" Lin Fan roared in fury.

"So what? Anyway, your Shadow Demon has been dealt with by this humble Taoist!" Su Qing said calmly. "You! You! You! If you have the guts, come out here and see how I deal with you!" Lin Fan roared in fury.

"I'm afraid you'll use your magic to extort money from me. If I kill you, I'll have to pay compensation. That's not worth it!" Su Qing ignored him and was about to get up and return to the shop.

"Just wait, once your lizard knight gets crushed by my Blood Demon Legion, you'll know what pain is!"

Lin Fan said viciously. In his eyes, Su Qing was a disgusting insect. With the power of his Lin family, crushing him would be no problem.

But it was precisely because of the protection of his treasure pavilion that he was able to survive on this street.

He's really good at hiding; it's been over half a month, and I haven't seen him leave this street at all!
But that's alright, it's too easy for the Lin family to target someone.

Didn't you, Su Qing, want to take on the big order from Yunshan Sect?
My Lin family will not let you have your way!
"Ah, so the puppet your family sent to compete with me is actually a Blood Demon Puppet? Well then, thank you for reminding me, Fellow Daoist Lin. I'll remember that!"

Su Qing gave Lin Fan a grateful look.

The order for three million spirit crystals from Yunshan Sect is the business he's been paying the most attention to recently.

Having failed to secure a back door, he had been gathering information about his rivals from Elders Li and Liu, through Yuan Tianye.

However, after taking in his Phantom Leopard, Elders Li and Liu only promised to give the two families a fair chance to compete, and did not reveal any information about the Lin family's election of a puppet.

This made it impossible for him to prepare in advance.

Unexpectedly, such crucial information came out of Lin Fan's mouth so easily.

It must be said that although the second-generation immortal from a prominent family is ugly and has a bad temper, he still has a certain level of character.

Lin Fan froze on the spot after being thanked, realizing that he had spoken out of turn and exposed his family's secret.

But then he thought, so what if Su Qing knew?
Within his family, the lizard knights and blood demon golems had long been compared.

The Lizard Knight is decent, but it's still quite a bit inferior to the Blood Demon Puppet.

The two elders of Yunshan Sect who had benefited from the Lin family wanted to make the two puppets compete fairly, justly, and openly.

Su Qing is destined to lose!

"Just wait, when you've exhausted your resources and crafted those three hundred lizard knights, only to lose a huge order and find them unsellable, then you'll be begging me for help!"

Lin Fan snorted coldly and led his clansmen away.

Su Qing's eyes, however, were fixed on one of the cultivators dressed in the You family's Taoist robe.

"Everyone says that the You family and the Lin family are now as close as brothers, and it seems that this is indeed the case."

So, it seems that You Xianda's invitation to visit the You family was not well-intentioned. Fortunately, I was studying the export version of the flying sword puppet at the time and had no time to accept his invitation.

Unexpectedly, they may have unwittingly avoided a disaster!

Su Qing pondered silently, realizing that his conflict with the Lin family was, for the time being, limited to Lin Fan, the second-generation immortal.

The Lin family's Golden Core cultivator and third-tier puppeteer wouldn't bother targeting a mere second-tier puppeteer like him.

As for Lin Fan alone, it's not that Su Qing looks down on him; whether it's combat strength or intelligence, he can easily crush him.

However, if we add the cunning and shrewd You Xianda, who also possesses a third-tier talisman, then it would still be somewhat dangerous.

"The You family is no good; let's find a chance to kill You Xianda!"

Before anyone knew it, Liang Haishun came up to him, heard his muttering earlier, and said angrily.

"Old Liang, what's wrong with you? You're so angry, you just want to kill someone like that, this isn't like you!"

Su Qing looked at Liang Haishun in surprise.

"Fellow Daoist Su may not know this, but Fellow Daoist Liang has a deep-seated hatred for the You family. More than 30 years ago, Fellow Daoist Liang asked someone to buy a respectable female cultivator. Eight months later, this female cultivator gave birth to a baby."

Their spiritual roots were excellent. Although they had no affinity for array formations, they had loved drawing and painting since childhood. Fellow Daoist Liang went to great lengths to send the mother and son to a talisman painter's tutelage for cultivation.

Unexpectedly, the talisman painter was targeted by the You family. Not only did the You family extract his soul to refine his paintings, but the mother and son also suffered the same fate. From that moment on, Fellow Daoist Liang and the You family were bound to have a grudge!

Like Liang Haishun, Helian Xian was elusive. Seeing Su Qing's confusion, he offered an explanation.

Upon learning of this, Su Qing immediately feigned righteous indignation:
"I never expected the You family to be so despicable. If I were given the chance, I would definitely help Fellow Daoist Liang avenge himself!"

“That You Xianda is not easy to deal with. He has the Foundation Establishment cultivation and the Heavenly Sword Crossing the West Diagram to protect him. Ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators and second-level body cultivators are no match for him. Now that he has allied himself with the Lin family, it will be extremely difficult to kill him!”
Asu, don't be impulsive. You're still young, and you have many opportunities ahead of you. It's not worth taking risks with someone like this!

Liang Haishun had just said it casually, but seeing that Su Qing's killing intent was even stronger than his own, he quickly tried to dissuade her.

Asu is a kind and righteous person.

But precisely because of this, he couldn't let Asu offend a powerful figure because of his old grudges.

Su Qing shook her head upon hearing this.

Some people are not ones he wants to provoke, but rather others who choose to provoke him.

When Lin Fan first arrived in Baiyun Immortal City, he destroyed the Wang family and then turned his attention to himself.

He simply couldn't believe that the You family hadn't been involved.

Especially after his last gambling battle, You Xianda sent people to find him several times, offering various prices to buy Tiger Egg Flowing Silver, which he refused one after another, but he still persisted.

He was even more convinced that the You family probably had their eyes on the puppets he owned.

There's no escaping this kind of thing; we can only deal with it as it comes and see what methods they have.

He invited Erbao into the shop and asked him about his spiritual practice.

They learned that although they were already over fifty years old, even if they swallowed the Foundation Establishment Pill to establish their foundation, their potential would be exhausted, and Foundation Establishment would be the end.

However, after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, their lifespan is extended to five hundred years, giving them another three hundred years to live well. Naturally, they will do their best to achieve this.

"Fellow Daoist Su, rest assured, we have prepared enough spirit stones to bid for the Foundation Establishment Pill. As for whether we can successfully establish our foundation after swallowing the pill, that depends on our luck!"

Helian Xian waved his hand and refused Su Qing's offer to lend him spirit stones, as did Liang Haishun.

With their accumulated wealth over the years, they naturally didn't need to borrow money to cover the cost of auctioning the Foundation Establishment Pill.

Upon hearing that they had ample funds, Su Qing immediately relaxed.

At that auction, these two treasures could probably borrow a sum of spirit stones!
(End of this chapter)